Taliban seize two main Afghan cities; Western nations ship troops to evacuate embassy employees

Taliban insurgents tightened their grip on Afghanistan on Friday, wresting management of its second and third largest cities whereas Western embassies ready to ship in troops to assist evacuate employees from the capital, Kabul.

The seize of the second-biggest metropolis of Kandahar within the south and Herat within the west after days of clashes are a devastating setback for the federal government because the lethal Taliban insurgency turns right into a rout of the safety forces.”The city looks like a front line, a ghost town,” provincial council member Ghulam Habib Hashimi stated by phone from Herat, a metropolis of about 6,00,000 individuals close to the border with Iran.”Families have either left or are hiding in their homes.”Referring to the southern financial hub of Kandahar, a authorities official instructed Reuters, “Following heavy clashes late last night, the Taliban took control.”ALSO READ | After Kandahar, Taliban seize Logar province, solely 90 km from Afghanistan capital KabulThe defeats have fuelled fears the US-backed authorities might fall to the insurgents as worldwide forces full their withdrawal after 20 years of warfare.A US defence official cited US intelligence as saying this week that the Taliban might take Kabul inside 90 days. Advances made by the Taliban in Afghanistan as on August 13. (Source: AP)The UN World Food Programme sees meals shortages in Afghanistan as “quite dire” and worsening, a spokesperson stated, including the scenario had all of the hallmarks of a humanitarian disaster.Of Afghanistan’s main cities, the federal government nonetheless holds Mazar-i-Sharif within the north and Jalalabad, close to the Pakistani border within the east, along with Kabul.In response to the Taliban advances, the Pentagon stated it will ship about 3,000 additional troops inside 48 hours to assist evacuate US embassy employees.ALSO READ | Explained: Strategic significance of Mazer-e-Sharif in Afghanistan; why it holds key to powerBritain stated it will deploy about 600 troops to assist its residents depart whereas different embassies and assist teams stated they too have been getting their individuals out.Canada would additionally deploy particular forces troops to Kabul to assist in the evacuation of embassy employees, the AP reported.The United Nations has warned {that a} Taliban offensive reaching the capital would have a “catastrophic impact on civilians” however there may be little hope for negotiations to finish the preventing with the Taliban apparently set on a army victory.The Taliban additionally captured the cities of Lashkar Gah within the south and Qala-e-Naw within the northwest, safety officers stated. Firuz Koh, capital of central Ghor province, was handed over and not using a struggle, officers stated.The militants, preventing to defeat the federal government and impose their strict model of Islamic rule, have taken management of 14 of Afghanistan’s 34 provincial capitals since August 6.ALSO READ | Govt points safety advisory for Indian journalists in Afghanistan as Taliban advance in the direction of KabulIn a blow to anti-Taliban forces, the insurgents detained veteran commander Mohammad Ismail Khan after they seized Herat, a provincial official stated, including that that they had promised to not hurt him and different captured officers.A Taliban spokesman confirmed that Khan, who had been main fighters in opposition to the Taliban in current weeks, was of their custody.HEAVY BLOWThe pace of the offensive, as US-led overseas forces put together to finish their withdrawal by the tip of this month, has sparked recriminations over President Joe Biden’s choice to withdraw US troops, 20 years after they ousted the Taliban within the wake of the September 11 assaults on the United States.Joe Biden stated this week he didn’t remorse his choice, noting Washington has spent greater than $1 trillion in America’s longest warfare and misplaced 1000’s of troops.ALSO READ | Taliban executed Indian photojournalist Danish Siddiqui after verifying his identification: ReportThe lack of the financial hub of Kandahar can be a heavy blow to the federal government. It is the heartland of the Taliban, ethnic Pashtun fighters who emerged within the province in 1994 amid the chaos of civil warfare to comb by many of the remainder of the nation over the subsequent two years.Government forces nonetheless managed Kandahar’s airport, which was the US army’s second largest base in Afghanistan throughout their 20-year mission, an official stated.Lashkar Gah is the capital of the opium-growing province of Helmand, the place British, US and different overseas forces battled the insurgents for years.ALSO READ | Taliban take over Herat Police headquarters in western AfghanistanThe US State Department stated Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke to President Ashraf Ghani on Thursday and instructed him the United States “remains invested in the security and stability of Afghanistan”. They additionally stated the United States was dedicated to supporting a political answer.US Senate Republican chief Mitch McConnell stated the exit technique was sending the United States “hurtling toward an even worse sequel to the humiliating fall of Saigon in 1975,” urging Biden to decide to offering extra help to Afghan forces.”Without it, al-Qaeda and the Taliban may celebrate the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks by burning down our Embassy in Kabul.”Britain’s Defence Secretary Ben Wallace stated Afghanistan was spiralling right into a failed state and civil warfare during which teams reminiscent of al-Qaeda would thrive and sure pose a menace to the West once more.ALSO READ | Taliban kill lady for carrying tight garments in Afghanistan’s Balkh provinceIn the deal struck with former US President Donald Trump’s administration final yr, the Taliban agreed to not assault US-led overseas forces as they withdrew.They additionally made a dedication to debate peace, however intermittent conferences with authorities representatives have gone nowhere. International envoys to Afghan negotiations in Qatar have known as for an accelerated peace course of as a “matter of great urgency” and for a halt to assaults on cities.Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan stated this week the Taliban had refused to barter except Ghani resigned.Pakistan formally denies backing the Taliban nevertheless it has been an open secret that Taliban leaders dwell in Pakistan and recruit fighters from a community of spiritual faculties in Pakistan.ALSO READ | Rockets land close to Afghan presidential palace in Kabul throughout Eid prayers: Reports